Chapter 2: Not a repairman

A sidekick is usually a job that refers to assisting a single hero.

Depending on the sidekick, they might perform different tasks like assisting in combat on the front lines or maintaining weapons, but helping the hero is the same for all.

And I, a sidekick who must always stay by the hero’s side, am currently…

“Can you fix this for me.”

…handling hero-related civil complaints at the counter in the first-floor lobby.

‘…But how is this in any way a hero-related complaint?’

Anyway, the reason I’m handling such tasks here is, of course, thanks to my wicked boss.

Perhaps because I’ve been treated this way for over a year, this work now feels much more comfortable.

I’ve even made friends with the people in this department, to the point where I’m invited not just to company dinners but also to internal clubs.

‘…Am I really a sidekick?’

First, let’s get to work.

There’s plenty of time for idle thoughts later.

“Sir? For that, you should go to the service center in the building over there.”

“They told me they couldn’t fix it there either.”

‘Then you should go to another service center, why did you come to the hero headquarters, which has nothing to do with repairs?’

Still, this isn’t the first or second time I’ve dealt with a troublemaker like this.

So I should be able to handle this one smoothly as well.

“Sir. We are heroes who protect the city’s peace, not repairmen.”

“Aren’t heroes beings who help people?”

“Yes, it is a hero’s duty to help people in trouble.”

“Then why can’t you fix this?”

“Because we’re not repairmen.”

“Can’t heroes these days do something as simple as that?”

I take that back.

I have no idea how to persuade this crazy old man.

‘Why are you asking us to fix a pistol in the first place?’

‘Usually, something like that….’

…A pistol?

“Uh, sir? Where did you happen to get that?”

“It was a gift from my grandson.”

‘It’s probably a toy gun.’

‘In the first place, there’s no way a crazy person would come all the way to the hero headquarters to ask for a real gun to be fixed, right?’

‘Right, even though it really looks like a gun, it can’t be real.’

‘Besides, possessing a gun is illegal, isn’t it?’

“By the way, what is that?”

“It’s a pistol.”

“…What?”

“If you pull the trigger here, something called a bullet comes out of this hole. It’s a lethal weapon. Is my explanation insufficient?”

‘Right, in life, you can even meet a grandfather who asks you to fix a pistol he received from his grandson.’

Just in case, let’s check one last time.

“So, you mean a pistol that fires live ammunition, right?”

“You know your stuff.”

“The kind that kills you if you get hit?”

“The bullets are small, so it seems they don’t die instantly.”

“…How do you know that, grandpa?”

“Don’t ask for details.”

“This sh*t….”

Feeling my life was in danger, I immediately tried to press the emergency button, but the old man was much faster at aiming the pistol at my head.

“My apologies. I dislike commotions.”

The grandfather’s friendly tone from just a moment ago now felt like that of a seasoned assassin.

No, maybe he really is a seasoned assassin….

‘…Do assassins these days go to the hero headquarters and threaten people to fix their pistols?’

‘Besides, they said they couldn’t fix it at the service center over there.’

‘Doesn’t that mean they just sent him over here without saying anything?’

‘What is the world coming to? No matter how important your own life is, you send a crazy old man with a gun to the hero headquarters?’

But on second thought, sending him to the hero headquarters is the right thing to do.

It’s the heroes who deal with crazy people like that.

‘No, but still, you could have at least made a phone call.’

‘Is that so difficult?’

While I was trying to make sense of this utterly chaotic situation, a woman suddenly appeared, snatched the pistol from the grandfather, and cheerfully shouted.

“Alright! This has been a hidden camera prank!”

Still bewildered and unable to grasp the situation, I noticed the woman smiling pleasantly and filming me with a camera.

‘Right, what kind of crazy person would ask to have a gun fixed at the hero headquarters?’

“This has been a hidden camera prank with the theme, ‘What if this old man was actually in the mafia?’! So, what are your thoughts?”

“…Don’t ever pull a stunt like this again.”

“Yes, I’m sorry. Well then, have a good day~”

The woman smiled awkwardly, put away the camera, and then led the grandfather next to her outside.

‘And they probably think that was fun.’

‘Kids these days have no sense.’

Only after leading the old man to a secluded alley with few people did the woman finally open her mouth.

“Old man, didn’t I tell you the world up here is different from our underworld?”

“…My apologies. It’s my first time in this world, so I didn’t know.”

“Do you really think it makes any sense to ask heroes to fix a pistol?”

“Down below, everyone fixes them, so I thought it would be fine.”

“…This is my fault for not explaining.”

The woman spoke in an annoyed tone as she lightly lifted a manhole cover on the ground.

“Let’s get out of here quickly before we get into unnecessary trouble.”

“Understood.”

And so, the two of them quietly returned to where they came from.

For some reason, work felt easier than usual today.

It was probably because of that d@mned hidden camera prank.

It felt terrible when it was happening, but thinking about it now, it feels even worse.

Why did a troublemaker like that have to latch onto me of all people?

Still, since it’s almost time to go home, my soured mood is gradually improving.

‘I should rest well today instead of doing that concept act.’

First, let’s start by going to bed early.

As I was making such happy plans, a dreadful voice was heard.

“Rea, it looks like things will get much busier starting tomorrow.”

“…What?”

“Do you happen to know who this is?”

On the paper handed to me by the department head from the next section was the name of a villain called ‘Clown’.

“Isn’t he the villain they can’t catch because they don’t know who he is?”

It’s certain that he’s a villain who must be apprehended, but he’s a headache because his location can’t be specified.

Of course, if I put my mind to it, I could probably find him within a week.

But I’m not sure if he’s a villain worth that much effort.

“That’s right, but the higher-ups ordered us to arrest him as soon as possible.”

“Why him, of all people?”

“How would I know? Anyway, we’ll have to pinpoint his location starting tomorrow, so get a good rest today.”

‘This is why the demand for sidekicks is so d@mn high, but there’s no supply…’

‘But isn’t this work unrelated to sidekicks?’

“By the way, you do know I’m not from this department, right?”

“Rea. They’re saying sidekicks should track this guy in the field with the heroes. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”
“….”

“I won’t stop you even if you say you’ll go out in this scorching sun and wander around until late at night.”

This is why being a sidekick is such a horribly absurd job.

If there’s not enough work, you should hire more people, why do you give more work to the people who are left?

No, wait, they probably can’t hire people even if they want to because no one applies.

Grumbling inwardly, I hardened my resolve.

“So, all I have to do is catch this guy, right?”

“Yeah, so rest well today and from tomorrow, let’s work har….”

“It’s fine, I’ll start today.”

Tonight, no matter what, I’m going to arrest that b@stard.

Then at least I won’t have to work overtime.

For the record, this isn’t for my personal gain.

I’m only doing this to save the hero headquarters’ precious labor force.

That… what was it, it would be a huge problem if another incident occurred while everyone was out looking for him, right?

I’m trying to prevent that situation.

Repeating such self-justifications in my head, I asked the department head.

“Alright, then should we start by pinpointing the villain’s location?”

“Let’s just start tomorrow. It’s not an urgent matter anyway.”

“Didn’t you just say it was urgent? So starting today is… Section Chief? Where are you going?”

“Then turn off the lights and go home.”

That d@mned b*tch who doesn’t have a shred of loyalty… no, the department head, left in an instant.

Left alone in the office, I did a simple stretch, then shouted with burning enthusiasm.

“I hope they all drop dead!”

After investigating that d@mned villain by myself for a whole hour, I managed to get some useful information.

First, his ability is to create electric orbs, and if you get hit… it would probably hurt a lot.

‘How would I know when I’ve never been hit by that attack?’

Anyway, the guy uses that ability to manipulate electronic devices like CCTVs and then carries out surprisingly planned crimes, like focusing his attacks on university professors.

Thanks to this, it’s hard to pinpoint his exact location, but looking at the areas with broken CCTVs and the crime scenes, it’s certain that he’s in this city.

This is all the information I found.

They really did a sh*tty job investigating.

For now, I think I can take down that villain easily… no, I think I’ll struggle a bit.

But I can definitely defeat him.

I have a strong feeling about it.

Even if I’m not certain, I have no choice but to fight.

Otherwise, I’ll be stuck working overtime.

I’m already exhausted from my dark hero activities every night, and now they want me to work overtime? I might actually die from overwork.

So tonight, no matter what, I have to catch that villain.

It’s a shame that I’ll get less attention than usual because this villain isn’t well-known, but I don’t have time to worry about that now.

…Let me say it again, this is absolutely not an act for personal gain.

This is for the sake of others, not myself.

Probably.

Alright, now let’s hurry back and get ready to fight.

As I was heading home with that resolve, I noticed the light was on in Iris’s office.

‘She probably forgot to turn it off.’

With that thought, I entered the office and came face-to-face with Iris, who was diligently investigating something.

“You’re still working?”

“Because I absolutely have to arrest that dark hero by the end of today.”

Come to think of it, today was a very bad day to be active as a dark hero.

After today, I’ll probably have a chance to escape like usual.

But I can’t put off today’s work until tomorrow.

If I do, a mountain of tasks will bury me.

Then, naturally, the time I have for my dark hero act will shrink, and I won’t have time to catch that villain either.

So tonight, no matter what, I must arrest him.

Having made that decision, I resolved, on the verge of tears, to prepare even more thoroughly than usual.